Integrated circuit (IC) components such as integrated circuit chips typically include a base layer or substrate and at least one layer of electrical conductive or non-conductive materials to form the integrated circuit. The substrate is commonly formed from silicon. In operation, as electric current passes through the electrically conductive material and/or semiconductor material, a significant amount of heat may be generated in the IC chip. Depending on the circuit layout on the substrate, non-uniform high temperature areas, “hot spots,” may develop across the chip. The hot spots create a temperature gradient across the IC chip which induces thermal stress within the chip. Thermal stress may cause early failure of IC chips and decrease circuit performance.
Current methods for mitigating the hot spots across IC chips include “smart” circuit layout and using “heat spreaders.” Smart circuit layout spaces out the components that create hot spots across the IC chip. However, the most thermally efficient circuit layout may not match the most electrically efficient layout. A heat spreader is typically a plate or heat pipe having a high thermal conductivity that is positioned on the IC chip. This increases the overall size and cost of the IC chip. Other methods of cooling or mitigating the hot spots include forming or machining microchannels on the bottom or back side of the substrate layer of the IC chip. A pressurized liquid coolant is then supplied to the microchannels to cool the IC chip.